Toso

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Name with Meaning

Toso is a Japanese term associated with rice wine — drunk to cleanse out the old, make room for the new, and keep your gaze fixed forward. That philosophy shapes everything about this Göteborg restaurant, from the way the menu is built to the energy in the room on a Friday night.

The Room

Step through a massive wooden door with a lion-dragon handle and you enter what feels like an underground hall. A gigantic sleeping Buddha presides over the space, iron pipe-like decorations hang from the ceiling, and the music thumps at a level that turns dinner into something closer to an event. The White Guide, which awarded Toso a Fine level recognition in 2026, describes it as a "darker dinner-club vibe" — and that reads as a compliment. The staff are equally pleasant and well-trained, keeping the experience grounded even when Saturday nights hit full stride.

The Food

Toso calls itself a "timeless flirtation between European and Asian kitchens," and the pan-Asian menu delivers on that premise through a sharing format. Dishes come out directly from the kitchen as they're ready, designed to be passed around the table. Two or three courses per person is the sweet spot.

Standouts include crispy fried shrimp in a chili-cream sauce, fresh red-snapper sashimi with a small seaweed noodle salad, grilled or steamed dumplings and gyozas, and what has become the restaurant's bestseller: crispy rice with cod and chipotle cream. To finish, the cloudberry compote paired with butter-toasted ice cream is not to be missed.

The Bar

On Saturday nights, coffee martinis and Toso's own cocktails move in serious volume. A cool Riesling or a mineral-rich glass of light red — such as a DeAetna from Sicily — works just as well alongside the pan-Asian plates. The bar is very much part of the experience here, not an afterthought.

Brunch and Beyond

Beyond dinner, Toso opens on weekends for brunch and offers a private space called the Orangeri for groups who want the restaurant to themselves. The kitchen also accommodates vegetarians, and the venue is wheelchair accessible — practical details that make the dramatic setting genuinely inclusive.